A solid beam of mahogany pierces a solid hunk of alabaster. Elegant and spare, it seats two comfortably, three if they're all friends. The non-rock end is supported by four legs of mahogany that have been ebonized (a term meaning they were painted black, though "ebonized" just has that certain … cachet), which themselves have been pierced by two rods of heavy aluminium, crossing through the beam and capped by four specially formed, perfectly fitting heavy black caps (well, alright, they came from my office chair, but they are heavy and perfectly formed). This piece reads beautifully from across the room, and the interplay of rough-hewn stone and polished wood is beguiling.

Read more Read less